Times Howard Stern Went Too Far Off Air

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Veteran broadcaster Howard Stern has experienced the heights of celebrity that many entering the industry can only dream of. As America's most famous "shock jock," Stern emerged as a radio star in the early 1980s, and spent the years after pushing the bounds of what was broadcastable, indulging in crude and offensive humor, sexualized on-air discussion and stunts, and a bevy of other controversies, building a loyal following in the process. By the turn of the new millennium, Stern had survived firings, negative headlines, and a bevy of fines from the Federal Communications Commission to become the self-proclaimed "King of All Media."

For decades, it seemed that Stern was unstoppable, with every controversy only adding to his legend and strengthening his shock-jock image and further endearing him to his enormous fanbase. Over the course of the decades he has been on air he has introduced listeners to a cast of characters, including his sidekick Robin Quivers, recurring guest Artie Lange, and the eccentric "Wack Pack" crew. But in recent years, his star power has dwindled, with his past behavior, much of which seems unthinkable today, gaining greater scrutiny in an era that more than ever is coming to realize the responsibilities outlets have when it comes to the messaging they allow to be made public. While Stern's most controversial on-air moments are well-documented, his off-air controversies aren't — here are just a few of them that suggest Stern may be as problematic a character off the mic as he has revealed himself to be on it.

By 1993, Howard Stern's popularity was undeniable. "The Howard Stern Show," which had first started broadcasting on New York City's WXRK-FM station in 1985, commanded enormous listener numbers in New York, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles, meaning he had a built-in audience that would assure his commercial success in other avenues. That was to come with the publication of "Private Parts," a 448-page book that shot to the top of the New York Times bestseller list, selling millions.

However, even in text, Stern's shock-jockeying was controversial. With the book filled with the same smut and boundary-pushing content as his radio show, several book warehouses and chains chose not to stock it — with one even deleting it from their in-store recreation of the New York Times bestseller list. "To change The New York Times best-seller list to express your critical opinion is the work of meaner minds than mine," Stern said, per The New York Times. "And these same people who think my book is inappropriate think it's perfectly fine to sell guns to drunks."

But just as with his radio show, the controversy only seemed to throw fuel onto the fire that was Stern's popularity. The incredible success of "Private Parts" led to it being picked up to be adapted into a movie, as well as two further bestselling books, the latter of which, "Howard Stern Comes Again," arrived in 2019.

Howard Stern's career has been notable for his willingness to engage in arguably childish feuds with other celebrities, especially rival broadcasters, as he attempted to claim his "King of All Media" crown or maintain his supremacy on the airwaves. Down the years, he has attacked major names such as David Letterman — with whom he later reconciled — Donald Trump, Lena Dunham, and Bill Maher.

But arguably his most bitter feud was with fellow radio stars Opie & Anthony, a duo in the Stern mould who rose to fame in the mid-1990s, and garnered a comparable male listenership for their "Opie & Anthony Show," which became a drive time favorite on WNEW-FM (102.7). The station was owned by Infinity Broadcasting, the company that also had K-Rock (92.3), the home of "The Howard Stern Show," on its roster.

Around that time, outlets noted that Stern's radio supremacy might be under threat if Opie and Anthony took their show to the morning slot — putting it in direct competition with "The Howard Stern Show." Almost as if to fan the flames of the rivalry, upcoming Opie and Anthony began to take shots at the veteran, in one instance purposefully ruining a surprise concert announcement Stern had teased to his listeners. Stern reacted angrily, threatening to resign from the station. The New York Post reported that Stern, who considered Opie and Anthony copycats of his shock-jock style, demanded from Infinity Broadcasting executives that other shows in their network must be banned from mentioning him or his show on the air.

Howard Stern's image changed dramatically over the years, especially once he became an entertainment sensation. As his chat show appearances in the early 1990s and the cover of "Private Parts" show, Stern's transformed from the mustachioed everyman in sports casual wear he seemed in the 1980s to something akin to a rock star, with long frizzy hair and sunglasses reminiscent of Joey Ramone.

But while many of Stern's fans saw his rock star image as a reflection of his rebelliousness, there was certainly a portion of his base that was turned off by this new version of the broadcaster. As critics have pointed out, much of Stern's appeal came from the fact that, despite his extreme behavior and willingness to push the boundaries of decency and taste, he represented himself as an American everyman who lived a regular, monogamous married life with his wife, Alison.

When the couple divorced in 1999, it came at a moment when Stern's everyman persona was dropping away. As he was increasingly found dating models and talking more about sex than ever, Entertainment Weekly reported in 2001 that his ratings were dropping dramatically, with journalist Mike Flaherty arguing that "the former King of Us has become one of THEM."

They say people grow more mellow with age, which in the case of Howard Stern wouldn't have been hard to do, with his crude and confrontational persona often veering into outright cruelty when he was at his most successful. However, in recent years, he has showed a great deal of regret about how he used to go about things on "The Howard Stern Show," claiming that therapy in recent years has awakened a new level of empathy in him and made him reconsider how he formerly treated his guests and other public figures. "There are people that I have spoken ill of, whom I've since called up and apologized to, and I don't re-air those things," he told The New York Times Magazine in 2019. Stern has also been increasingly open about his traumatic early life and how it may have shaped his behavior at the start of his career.

Stern's output has calmed down considerably from the stunt-based broadcasting of his early days, with a renewed focus on deep-dive celebrity interviews focusing on biographical details and celebrities' inner lives. But leaked footage from 2013 of Stern lecturing his team on how they should be expected to do everything to promote the show as a celebrity PR mainstay has seen his fans brand him a sell-out whose new image, they say, would have drawn the derision of his younger self. Whereas Stern once freely used racial slurs and spoke in derogatory terms about disabled and LGBTQ+ people, he now proudly describes himself as "woke," further splitting his fanbase.

Amid what has been a huge tonal shift for the one-time "King of All Media," outlets have reported that Howard Stern and his camp may finally be at the end of the road when it comes to having a devoted listenership. Stern signed to Sirius Satellite Radio, which later became Sirius XM Radio, in 2006 for an eye-watering $500 million, and has renewed his contract with the broadcaster numerous times. However, in the summer of 2025, it was reported by several outlets that Stern's time at Sirius may be over, with the tabloid New York Post claiming that his audience had dwindled to just 125,000 from a peak of more than 20 million. 

It was rumored that staffers were withholding material from the show as they knew the show was coming to an end: "Most of us have been coasting at work the last year ... we know he's retiring, whether by choice or because he's forced out," one source told the outlet.

However, toward the end of August, The Express U.S. countered claims of Stern's professional demise, with the news that he had signed a new deal with Sirius and was in line for another "monster" payday. It now seems possible that the rumors of Stern's firing were all hot air, with some claiming the shock jock may have been at the center of a hoax intended to drum up interest in his show ahead of a planned return in the fall. Whether this is the case — and whether it has worked — fans will have to wait and see.